Bayern Munich agree $43.2 million deal with Juventus for Chilean international Arturo Vidal

Chilean midfielder Arturo Vidal is closing in on a move to Bayern Munich.

Vidal, 28, starred for Chile as they won the Copa America for the first-time ever this summer, but the man they call “King Arthur” has told Juventus he wants to leave the reigning Italian champions and head back to the Bundesliga.

Juventus’ chief executive Beppe Marotta confirmed on Monday, see below, that Vidal has asked to leave and it is believed an initial fee of $40 million has been agreed between the two clubs with adds-on taking the deal to $43.2 million.

Vidal was involved in controversy this summer as he crashed his Ferrari in Santiago, Chile during the Copa America tournament and was arrested for DUI. He returned to the field of play after that incident and helped Chile to glory, with his powerful runs forward, tough-tackling and pinpoint passes key to his rise as one of European soccer’s top midfielders.

As for Juventus, manager Massimiliano Allegri has now lost Carlos Tevez to Boca Juniors, Andrea Pirlo to New York City FC and Angelo Ogbonna to West Ham United this summer but he has signed Mario Mandzukic, Sami Khedira and Paulo Dybala, and Juve are in talks with Schalke about midfielder Julian Draxler. The Turin club will look a lot different next season but after reaching the UEFA Champions League final and winning three-straight Serie A titles, an air of change on the horizon was always emanating from Allegri’s ageing squad.

Vidal has been a key component in Juve’s rise since he joined them in 2011 from Bayer Leverkusen, but after plenty of interest from the Premier League, the Chilean destroyer is now heading back to Germany and will help plug the considerable gap left by Bastian Schweinsteiger’s departure to Manchester United